V 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 9114 

To authorize the President to award the Medal of Honor to Special Forces 

Command Sergeant Major Ramon Rodriguez of the Army for acts of 

valor during the Vietnam War. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 23, 2024 

Mr. CORREA introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Armed Services 

A BILL 

To authorize the President to award the Medal of Honor 

to Special Forces Command Sergeant Major Ramon 

Rodriguez of the Army for acts of valor during the 

Vietnam War. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. AUTHORIZATION FOR AWARD OF THE MEDAL 

4 OF HONOR TO SPECIAL FORCES SERGEANT 

5 RAMON RODRIGUEZ FOR ACTS OF VALOR 

6 DURING THE VIETNAM WAR. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find8 ings: 


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1 (1) At the age of 17, Ramon Rodriguez of Wil2 mington, California, began his military career when 

3 he enlisted in the Army during his junior year at 

4 Banning High School. 

5 (2) While a Staff Sergeant in the Army, Ramon 

6 Rodriguez served in Vietnam for 32 months during 

7 the Vietnam War. In that time, then-Staff Sergeant 

8 Major Rodriguez received a total of 17 combat med9 als and awards in recognition of his heroism and 

10 acts of valor against hostile enemy forces. 

11 (3) Staff Sergeant Rodriguez’s courage in com12 bat has earned him the distinction of being one of 

13 the most decorated combat soldiers who served in 

14 Vietnam. 

15 (4) For fearless actions while wounded and ex16 posed to intense enemy fire, Staff Sergeant 

17 Rodriguez’s distinguished service was further ac18 knowledged by three Bronze Stars with V, 2 Oak 

19 Leaf Clusters, and five Purple Hearts. 

20 (5) On August 16, 1967, he volunteered to 

21 guide a helicopter pilot by flashlight to evacuate 

22 wounded platoon members. The helicopter was the 

23 target of concentrated enemy fire, yet Staff Sergeant 

24 Ramirez remained exposed until he had directed the 

25 aircraft into the pick-up zone. Staff Sergeant RodriVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:52 Jul 24, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9114.IH H9114

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1 guez was awarded the Army Commendation Medal 

2 for Heroism. 

3 (6) On November 8, 1967, Staff Sergeant 

4 Rodriguez entered a Viet Cong tunnel complex that 

5 he knew was occupied by the enemy. Despite the 

6 risk of cave-in, he employed grenades to root out the 

7 enemy and cover the tunnel exits to prevent their es8 cape. 

9 (7) On January 24, 1968, his outpost came 

10 under a heavy barrage of enemy mortars, followed 

11 by a ground assault. The platoon leader was mor12 tally wounded, and Staff Sergeant Rodriguez imme13 diately assumed command of the platoon. The enemy 

14 force was able to breach the perimeter and Staff 

15 Sergeant Rodriguez, though wounded himself, began 

16 moving through the trench line administering aid to 

17 the wounded personnel while leveling intense fire 

18 that killed four enemy sappers. After the casualties 

19 were moved to a safe area, he rallied the four re20 maining men of the platoon, and courageously man21 aged to hold off the enemy onslaught. 

22 (8) On February 26, 1968, Staff Sergeant 

23 Rodriguez’s platoon was ambushed during a search 

24 and clear mission. The platoon leader and the lead 

25 man were seriously wounded, and the platoon was 


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1 pinned down by enemy fire. Staff Sergeant Rodri2 guez assumed command and maneuvered the platoon 

3 to a location where he could place a base of fire on 

4 the enemy troops, and he pulled the platoon leader 

5 to safety. He repeated his gallant actions, although 

6 he was wounded by small arms fire, until all the 

7 wounded personnel were removed. A sweep of the 

8 area revealed eight mortally wounded insurgents, 

9 seven AK-47 rifles, and three grenade launchers. 

10 (9) Staff Sergeant Rodriguez attended the 

11 United States Ranger School and graduated with 

12 distinguished honors. 

13 (10) Staff Sergeant Rodriguez led the Special 

14 Forces scuba team at Ford Gulick, Canal Zone, 

15 Panama, and directed several rescue missions. 

16 (11) In 1981, Staff Sergeant Rodriguez earned 

17 the rank of Command Sergeant Major at the United 

18 States Sergeant Major Academy at Fort Bliss, 

19 Texas. 

20 (12) Command Sergeant Major Rodriguez was 

21 nominated for the Medal of Honor in 1982. 

22 (13) Command Sergeant Major Rodriguez com23 pleted two more assignments before officially retiring 

24 from the Army in 1983. 


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1 (14) On June 11, 2008, Command Sergeant 

2 Major Rodriguez was inducted as a member of the 

3 Ranger Hall of Fame. 

4 (15) Command Sergeant Major Rodriguez is 

5 known to be one of the most decorated combat sol6 diers who served in the Vietnam War. 

7 (16) Rodriguez currently serves as the Chair8 man of the Military and Veterans Affairs Commis9 sion for the County of Los Angeles, California. 

10 (17) Command Sergeant Rodriguez’s devotion 

11 to duty and personal courage are in keeping with the 

12 highest traditions of the military service and reflect 

13 great credit upon himself and the United States 

14 Army. 

15 (b) WAIVER OF TIME LIMITATIONS.—Notwith16 standing the time limitations specified in section 7274 of 

17 title 10, United States Code, or any other time limitation 

18 with respect to the awarding of certain medals to persons 

19 who served in the Armed Forces, the President may award 

20 the Medal of Honor under section 7271 of such title to 

21 Command Sergeant Major Ramon Rodriguez of the Army 

22 for acts of valor, sacrifice, and courage at the risk of his 

23 own life beyond the call of duty during the Vietnam War. 

Æ 


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